396 passengers of two flights stranded due to snag

The pilot of a British Airways flight, which was scheduled to depart at 5.30 am with 213 passengers and eight cabin crew members, noticed a defect after the flight got onto the runway. He immediately alerted ATC and taxied it back to the terminal. The passengers were off-loaded and made to wait at a hall. Around 8.30 am, it was announced that the flight was ready to fly. 

However, the pilot after the final check-up said that the snag was not resolved. After the passengers grew impatient and started arguing with the British Airways staff after which it was announced at 11.30 am that the flight was cancelled for the day and lodging arrangements were made for the passengers at different hotels in the city. The flight was rescheduled to take off in the early hours of Thursday. 

Sources said that had the defect been left unnoticed, it would have put 221 the lives of passengers. Similarly, 183 passengers who were waiting to board a Malaysian Airlines plane, which was scheduled to take off at 11.30 am to Kuala Lumpur, were disappointed after they were told that had it developed a technical snag, when it reached Chennai. Since the defect couldn’t be resolved even after hours, the flight was eventually cancelled and passengers were taken to hotels for a temporary stay.